Investor Types

How Internet Startup Investors are changing the game

Historically, venture financing has been the domain of a small subset of investors: high net worth individuals and sophisticated investors (i.e. the very rich).  When we were trying to raise money for our first venture, we found this very frustrating.  We felt like outsiders looking in and were not able to access the group of investors that could get our idea off the ground.

A number of crowdfunding websites have helped partially bridge this gap -  essentially they’ve digitized the existing angel investor network.  At CrowdBnk we want to widen the investor pool even further.  We are the only crowdfunding platform in the UK that has the necessary FCA permissions to allow retail investors (i.e. everyday people) to invest in the equity projects we have listed on our site.  This means that for as little as £10, anyone can play the game that has previously been reserved for the wealthy or well-connected.

Our different approach to investing doesn’t mean that we want to exclude sophisticated investors from participating in CrowdBnk, and in fact we’ve designed our model to make it as easy as possible for them to participate.  When you upgrade your user account on CrowdBnk we give you the option to self-certify that you’re an experienced investor with a history of investing in early-stage ventures.   If you’re not a confident investor, however, don’t worry.  We’ll ask you a few questions to assess your understanding of the risks involved and likelihood of success and then, if you pass, we’ll classify you as a retail investor and provide you with the necessary risk warnings and training to ensure that you know what you are doing. 

We take client classification seriously and exercise due care in ensuring that everyone on CrowdBnk understands the investment process and risk involved.  For those new to investing we realise it can be a pretty daunting experience and we want to make things as painless and easy-to-follow as possible.  If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact us and we will be in touch to help you through the process.